Clone Wars Returning to the Temple
by Jochern
Summary: One-shot. Talon and Mace tumbled out of the Supreme Chancellor's smashed window and down the side of the senate building's roof. They now had to return to the Temple and warn everyone. Sequel to Choosing sides and also part of the Talon universe.


Returning to the Temple

 **Coruscant, senate building**

Talon never knew if she would help them, but she pulled through in the end. Probably thanks to Zataji's convincing ways. The easily excited Arkanian female knew how to convince the right people. They probably would had gone over the edge in they hadn't been caught. But, Seph grabbed Talon's hand in the last moment. Talon looked up. The Chiss mercenary's hand gripped hers firmly, but she couldn't pull her up since she held onto Mace too.

Mace was grimacing in pain over his lost limb. He held it together somewhat, but he was slipping into unconsciousness. Blood dripped from his cut off limb.

"Hold on, T'racen!" Seph called. "Give me a damn hand, Miss Jedi lady!"

Zataji got out of the steering seat and raised her hands. Slowly she started lifting Talon and Mace, as Seph give it all to pull them up. Zataji managed with Seph's aid to get both masters up into the roofless speeder car.

Talon breathed out heavily as she held onto Mace tightly.

"Get us out of here, now!" She told both of them pleadingly.

Zataji jumped in behind the controls and accelerated the vehicle and joined the mass of traffic around the senate building itself, disappearing into the masses. Seph kneeled beside the Masters and grabbed a cloth quickly.

"This'll work short term," she said. "He's strong but he needs a doctor, stat."

Talon let her use the cloth to stop Mace's bleeding. Zataji looked over at them after a moment.

"What happened?" She asked worriedly. "W-what happened to Master Windu?"

Talon looked down at Mace. He looked at her with weak eyes.

"Palpatine…" she replied under her breath.

Zataji and Seph looked at each other.

"I don't understand master. Please," Zataji said gently. "Master."

"The chancellors a Sith lord," Talon explained with a heavy heart. She swallowed hard. "Saesee's dead. So is Kolar and Kit." She closed her eyes and blinked away tears.

Zataji's eyes were wide his horror and fear filled her. Three Masters were dead? The Supreme Chancellors a Sith lord? **The** Sith lord. The one they had been looking for. How was that possible? He must be incredibly powerful to fight off five members of the council and mislead the entire council for years.

"We have to warn…" Seph started. "…I don't know, someone. The senate, rest of the Council of yours?"

"Most of them aren't on Coruscant," Talon told her. "Zataji, get us to the temple, quickly."

The Arkanian padawan nodded. Talon didn't take her eyes off Mace the whole time. She kept holding him tightly and let his head rest against her chest.

"My Master's in the temple," Zataji said worriedly.

Talon finally looked up.

"Master Zinbali's powerful. We have to find her."

She knew even Zinbali wasn't a match for Palpatine. After he cut through the masters on the Council, it was obvious that someone whom wasn't on the Council alone had no chance. They needed Yoda. He could probably beat Palpatine. Hopefully, but he was far away. Too far away. He was all the way across space defending Kashyyk from the Separatists.

The trip to the temple felt as if it took forever for Talon. But finally the temple could be seen on the horizon. When they came closer, they saw gunships, dozens of them flying around the temple.

"Oh no."

"Why are these clones here?" Zataji asked confused. "Master?"

Talon swallowed. She had a very bad feeling. Her mind was filling with a sense of fear and death. People was dying. Jedi was dying. The clones was attacking the temple. The clones was turning. Why and how, was questions she couldn't ask right now.

"Take us closer without getting shot down," she ordered.

Zataji turned her head and looked over her shoulder with grave confusion.

"S-shot down?"

Talon narrowed her eyes on the gunships.

"They're attacking the temple."

Seph and Zataji's eyes widened. Zataji quickly took them lower and avoided the gunships.

"My master's in there," Zataji exclaimed horrified.

"Not to mention the Jedi kitties," Seph added, referring to the younglings.

"Take us in through the hangar, Zataji. We're going to help them."

Zataji did as told and managed to get inside the temple hangar without being caught. The clones apparently was still fighting to get through the main entrance. They had barely gotten inside. The hangar itself was empty. Not a soul in sight.

Talon got out of the vehicle and looked at a shuttle.

"We're taking that out of here. Seph, could you please stay here and get Mace into it?" She asked, almost begged.

Seph nodded.

"Don't worry," she said with a smile. "I'll get that shuttle ready for ya."

Talon and Zataji hurried out into a corridor. It was empty also. But they could hear blaster ire. Talon activated her blue lightsaber and Zataji activated her own blue saber. The two walked quickly through the Temple hangar, with a feeling of death and fear rising in their minds.

Their first bodies came at the entrance to the hangar itself. Five engineers who just happened to work here. Not even Jedi's, but still they had been mewed down. Zataji shook her head sadly.

Through the door came three jedi. All dead. Two of them didn't even have their light sabers next to them. Simply shot in the back. The third had his lightsaber next to him. The elderly Wookie had been shot repeatedly over two dozen times. The bastard traitors didn't take any chances.

Zataji was still trying to accept that the clones was responsible for slaughtering them. Talon felt her feelings was in turmoil. She couldn't blame her at all.

Talon knew that this was only the beginning.

Hurrying through the corridors, one after another, they quickly made their way deeper into the temple. They stumbled across bodies scattered here and there, but no mayor battle yet.

For a moment Talon though the galaxy hated her, because almost as if on que, they stumbled onto a bloodbath.

"Oh god…" Zataji gasped.

In the middle of the open chamber was an Ongree jedi. To Talon's slight gratefulness, it was Coleman Kcaj. Hopefully her fellow Master was still alive. Around the Ongree laid dozens of clones. Thirty five at least. Those bastards had paid the real price for turning on the Order. This was the cost of fighting the Jedi. Only pure numbers had overwhelm the Ongree jedi it seemed. This made both her and Talon feel slightly better. Seeing the mass of dead clones littered around. With four doors into the large chamber, they had probably swarmed in from all openings, and still he killed so many of them.

At that point, three clones stepped into the chamber on the opposite side.

"Jedi, blast them!" a Corporal shouted.

The three clones opened fire.

Talon and Zataji immediately deflected the incoming bolts. Talon easily deflected a pair of bolts back at them, dropping one of the troopers to the ground and injuring one.

Meanwhile Zataji rushed forward and leaped at them. She slashed across the armor plated chest of one and in a quick maneuver decapitated the one injured by Master T'racen. She felt a rush of relief as she killed the two clones. Her grip on her lightsaber had tightened greatly. Slowly she eased her grip and turned back to Master T'racen.

"Nice moves," Talon complimented her.

"Master Zinbali taught me well, as did you," Zataji replied gratefully.

"Let's keep moving," Talon said and quickly picked up the pace out of the chamber.


End file.
